The governmental inspectors have carried out several uncovering job operations leading to the exposure of the situation that can be compared to slave life in the sphere of carnauba wax extraction in Brazil. It employs approx. 500,000, and the industry has faced criticism based on growing reports of worker abuse.
Headed by the lead inspector Gislene Melo dos Santos Stacholski, the carnauba wax plantations in the arid Caatinga Region of Piauí by the tough mobilization unit were invaded. The investigation was successfully conducted by infiltrating unofficial channels, which required cooperation between the labor ministry, federal police, and prosecutors.
Carnauba wax searching is a hand-down job done amid the hot sun without consideration. The flowers of the Costa Rica palm provide the raw material for beeswax workers throughout northeast Brazil. They also face the daunting task of extracting the wax from these sparsely scattered and thorny palm trees in the Caatinga landscape.
Shock government statistics show that 11 workers were rescued from the carnauba two years ago, which is a 33.9% rise compared to the figures of the last 9 years. By noting this, it becomes clear to see a wide-roach problem of excessive labor complying with a slave-like definition. Over the period from 2009 to now, the total number of people rescued has reached 3,190.
The operations undercover have revealed a devastating reality, one of the workers even brought on the informal recruitment and insufficient payment. Had many of these workers even been lucky to harvest this amount, their earnings would be scarcely enough to cover year-long sustenance. Workers abandoned working in the fields and built gardens to earn their livelihood during these notharvesting periods.
Health and safety worries were ever present since the employees did not have the proper equipment. Using handmade tools for cutting wild carnauba palms was troubling as they could be injured without any protective gear. The living conditions were unsuitable regarding humidity and sanitary conditions.
The specific difficulty comes from tracking down the procurement of carnauba wax to larger corporations, relating to the industry’s informal nature. The Ministry of Labor and Social Development has urged big wax factories to sign agreements that signify commitments to fair trade principles and end informality. Nevertheless, according to the sources, while the recognized corporations persuade the input manufacturers to stop it, they bypass the exploitative one.
International companies must be transparent, and it becomes their responsibility to form rules according to the actions to stop labor exploitation altogether in the carnauba wax industry. Awareness and pressure continuously mount up as a result of investigations, which are repeated, and they are a platform for change to be brought in to ensure good working conditions, fair wages, and rights protection of workers, of course, is a must.
